Pacific Northwest Gardener's October Checklist

I am a fair-weather gardener. I like to sit down in front of a log fire enjoying my winter through the windows, rather than donning full rain gear and Wellies to deal with soggy perennials. This means getting ahead during those agreeable early-autumn days.

Le jardinet

Time to plant spring bulbs. Begin with the fun stuff! Most of us like planting to weeding, and this really is the month to get spring bulbs to the ground.

Le jardinet

To many people, daffodils are the symbol of spring. They look better when massed in the garden, so try planting them in drifts along a walkway — or tuck them between late-flowering perennials, for example black-eyed Susan (Rudbeckia spp). Since the bulb foliage dies down, it will be hidden by those emerging perennials.

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It is possible to achieve a similar effect at a shade garden with bluebells implanted near hostas.

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Consider your general garden color scheme when choosing spring bulbs. Our front garden is planted in blue and silver, so I repeated this with white daffodils, white crocuses and countless periwinkle windflowers (Anemone blanda). Enchanting.

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Plant fall container gardens. Refresh your container gardens with a selection of winter-hardy evergreen shrubs, perennials and seasonal color spots.

Small conifers, bright spurge (Euphorbia spp) and citrus sedums are simple candidates for containers — particularly if dressed up with a few cheerful pansies.

Do not forget to add bulbs into those containers for an additional layer of attention next spring. Dwarf daffodils, hyacinths and crocuses are just a few of these possibilities.

Revealed: ‘Princess Irene’ tulips are stunning with ‘Peach Flambe’ coral bells (Heuchera).

Le jardinet

Focus on exciting foliage to make color containers as vibrant. Brightly variegated Aucuba, coral bells (Heuchera), evergreen ferns such as the orange-tipped autumn fern (Dryopteris erythrosa) and variegated grasses beautifully around out shady container gardens.

Le jardinet

‘Pink Frost’ hellebore is a summer celebrity, blooming for many months with flowers in every shade of pink — all in precisely the exact same time! You might even include snowdrop bulbs in partially shaded pots.

Niki Jabbour

Extend the harvest. Many vegetables, such as Brussels sprouts and parsnips, endure even harsh frosts. Cover more tender carrots and lettuce with a floating row cover (such as Harvest Guard) or a cold period to prolong the growing season.

Natalie DeNormandie

As you’re from the vegetable garden, take out the last of the summer crops, such as tomatoes and herbs that are tender. (I expect that your ginger did better than mine this year.)

Make certain to remove fallen leaves from under the apple trees — particularly if your trees suffered from apple scab. Why do not compost these leaves. I replace the top inch of soil with new mulch as an additional precaution to prevent fungal infections from spreading.

The Garden Consultants, Inc..

Normally tidy up. Soggy hostas aren’t the most attractive design statement. Cut them down together with other exhausted perennials and grasses, but make a couple of seed heads from coneflowers (Echinacea) and grasses as winter food for the birds.

C.M. Jones Incorporated

Split and multiply! October is a fantastic time to divide many perennials, such as hostas and false spirea (Astilbe). A swift slice with a sharp spade does the trick for most plants.

I also have to dig up my bearded iris plants, divide them and replant with their knuckles observable. Overenthusiastic mulching has buried them too heavy, so that they did not bloom well this year.

Bonin Architects & Associates

Play at the leaves. Consider leaves nature’s gift to the garden. All you have to do is get them into the ideal place. Those on your yard can be shredded with the lawnmower, then either added to your compost bin or place back on the garden as a mulch. Do not cover crowns of perennials, however, since they could rot.

Home Ecology

MVP Complete Compost Bin, Large – $220

Make composting simpler. We’ve got a large garden, and also the compost bins are some distance apart from several planting beds and borders. We therefore have many cable pliers for compost hidden behind evergreen trees, however, a portable frame such as the one shown here would also work.

I rake the leaves to those and leave them to break down before spreading the rich mulch back on the garden the following year. It conserves moving the leaves twice.

Enjoy the season. Crisp atmosphere, sunny days, the odor of sweet apples out of katsura trees and the everchanging, vivid display of autumn leaves depends upon us. Enjoy nowadays and the chance to be outdoors.

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Photo courtesy of idog

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